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While working in Texas last month, I had the good fortune to visit the Dallas Museum of Art. I found a few paintings that reminded me of works from The Phillips Collection, and thought they made nice pairings.

In the summers of 1907 and 1910, Robert Henri traveled to Haarlem, The Netherlands, where he painted many portraits of the local people, including these two works which may be the same sitter. Henri described young Cori here as “a little white headed broad faced red cheeked girl…always laughing.”

Between 1911 and 1924, George Bellows painted eleven portraits of his wife, Emma Story Bellows (1884–1959). The works from the 1920s were created in Woodstock, New York, where the couple summered. These mature portraits reflect Bellows’s admiration for the Old Masters, Thomas Eakins, and contemporary color theories.

After establishing himself in the 1920s as the world’s foremost watercolorist, John Marin began painting oils in the 1930s. These paintings reveal Marin’s renowned ability to capture his immediate impression of a powerful seascape along the rocky Maine coast.

Kathleen captured not only the books she collects, but also the environment in which she enjoys them in this contribution to our community collection

The collecting instinct reaches its apotheosis in books.–Lawrence Clark Powell, “The Loves Have I,” in A Passion for Books, 1958

Nearly 5% of participants in our Gauguin to Picasso: Masterworks from Switzerland interpretive station have shared their passion for collecting books. With reasons ranging from gaining knowledge, traveling to faraway places, enjoying the pure act of reading, or thinking of books as friends, the Phillips is a haven for bookworms of all types.

Share your love of books, or whatever you collect, by visiting the exhibition or creating your own at home and share it with #PhillipsGoesSwiss. Join us at tonight’s Phillips after 5 to participate in a community collection project!

Elizabeth,a visitor from Takoma Park, is also an avid reader and book collector

Valerie collects “pictures because they remind me how many happy moments I have lived”; Rachel collects “ticket stubs because they remind me where I have been”

Many of the paintings in Gauguin to Picasso: Masterworks from Switzerland represent artists’ memories of impactful travels or of people they loved. As many submissions to our interpretive station reflect, another important way people remember travels, loved ones, or events in their lives is by collecting. They collect objects—snow globes, ticket stubs, photos, postcards, and more—or simply the memories themselves. What do you collect to remember? Contribute to the community collection by visiting the exhibition or creating your own at home and share it with #PhillipsGoesSwiss.

One visitor collects “memories of fragrances because they comfort me”

Peggy collects “memories because I have dementia and I want to remember”

Robert collects “baseball hats because they remind me of the game”; Bart collects “notes and cards from loved ones to remember the past”

Tracey collects “snow globes because they record travel, places, etc.”